Who is the Restrainer?

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2 thess 2
“and now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own time…only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way…”

there seems to be a doctrine that the restrainer is the Holy Spirit and that when he is removed the church will also be removed.

however, i take issue with this.
While restraining may be a work of the Holy Spirit it does not follow then that the church is removed, that is heresay and speculation.

Paul mentions the Spirit in verse 13, why does he not refer to the restrainer as the Spirit?

So RESTRAINING as a work of the Spirit is a work ONLY until he is taken out of the way
from doing that work.

Also
He who restrains, restrains lawlessness.
in verse 3: let no one decieve you by any means: for the day [of the lord and our gathering to him] will not come unlesss the falling away comes first…

The restrainer is removed…then lawlessness comes]…then comes our gathering.
so the church is not removed with the restrainer.
 
2 thess 2
“and now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own time…only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way…”

there seems to be a doctrine that the restrainer is the Holy Spirit and that when he is removed the church will also be removed.

however, i take issue with this.
While restraining may be a work of the Holy Spirit it does not follow then that the church is removed, that is heresay and speculation.

Paul mentions the Spirit in verse 13, why does he not refer to the restrainer as the Spirit?

So RESTRAINING as a work of the Spirit is a work ONLY until he is taken out of the way
from doing that work.

Also
He who restrains, restrains lawlessness.
in verse 3: let no one decieve you by any means: for the day [of the lord and our gathering to him] will not come unlesss the falling away comes first…

The restrainer is removed…then lawlessness comes]…then comes our gathering
.
so the church is not removed with the restrainer.

D-R Bible, Haydock Commentary:

haydock1859.tripod.com/id224.html
 
The Pope. The papacy, along with the Catholic Church, is the only institution that has been around since St. Paul wrote this. The Roman Empire is long gone and Antichrist did not appear, so that interpretation is falsified. And nobody takes the Holy Spirit out of the way! It’s the pope who prevents the reign of Antichrist, but he will be martyred, as we see in the vision of Fatima. Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered…
 
2 thess 2
“and now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own time…only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way…”

there seems to be a doctrine that the restrainer is the Holy Spirit and that when he is removed the church will also be removed.
In Revelation 7 the restrainers are angels, holding back the winds of judgment until all those who will be saved have been sealed . . .
 
I tackeled this when writing commentary on it for my study Bible, here is what I have
2:6-7 restraining: Severian says it’s the Holy Spirit that restrains, while Ishodad of Merv, Theodore of Mopsuestia, Theodoret of Cyrus say its God’s decree. St. John Chrysostom, Haimo, Ambrosiaster, Thietland, Tertullian claim its the reign of the Roman Empire. I am of the opinion that this is concerning the binding of the Devil that we read about in Revelation 20. The Fathers don’t appear to make that connection, but it seems quite obvious from the eyes of an ammillenialist. I assume that there are some reasons why the Fathers did not make that connection; 1) is because some Fathers had not considered the book of Revelation to be canonical, and therefore would not have connected those passages together. 2) St. Augustine is the one who brought greatest development early on to Rev. 20 and the binding of the Devil, and therefore had not advanced far enough with it to connect these two passages.
 
In Revelation 7 the restrainers are angels, holding back the winds of judgment until all those who will be saved have been sealed . . .
That’s what I was thinking. Along with the chains that hold back Satan during the 1000 year age of the Church.

The Church itself, as God’s instrument of salvation in the world, are the chains, along with her prayers, her teaching of the faithful, and her sacraments.

-Tim-
 
“In II Thessalonians 2:6-7 Paul alludes to something that he doesn’t explain. He says that there is something restraining the man of lawlessness. And then he says to the Thessalonians, “You know what I’m talking about.” I don’t think Mr. White could establish from Scripture alone what Paul is talking about. That’s found in tradition. The early church fathers are very clear as to what Paul was talking about was the rule of law, civil law, civil society and the order that it establishes, holding back the man of sin. Now, we could debate that issue, but that is, in fact, in apostolic tradition, that is preserved outside of Scripture.”
  • Patrick Madrid
James White vs Patrick Madrid on Sola Scriptura vintage.aomin.org/SANTRAN.html
 
“In II Thessalonians 2:6-7 Paul alludes to something that he doesn’t explain. He says that there is something restraining the man of lawlessness. And then he says to the Thessalonians, “You know what I’m talking about.” I don’t think Mr. White could establish from Scripture alone what Paul is talking about. That’s found in tradition. The early church fathers are very clear as to what Paul was talking about was the rule of law, civil law, civil society and the order that it establishes, holding back the man of sin. Now, we could debate that issue, but that is, in fact, in apostolic tradition, that is preserved outside of Scripture.”
  • Patrick Madrid
James White vs Patrick Madrid on Sola Scriptura vintage.aomin.org/SANTRAN.html
I realize you are quoting someone else but do you know of any specific examples of the ECFs teaching this?
 
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